Aftermath // 5SOS Fanfic // Ashton Irwin

You're Insane

Claire's POV- "This is not a place to be when the sun goes down, Ashton."

"Seriously, trust me!"

"You haven't lived here long, but this place has history and-"

"I know, Claire. I told you to just trust me. This is gonna be great!"

He hops out of the car, and I reluctantly follow him to the Wasteland Dropoff.

Years ago, Wasteland Dropoff was the ideal place for a picnic or party or date to enjoy the view over the cliff, but then legend has it that a girl named Alice fell off the side and still haunts the area. I don't believe in ghosts, but this place is a dump now and I'm willing to bet some shady stuff goes down here. The sun is just starting to set, and I'm nervous.

"Okay, so I thought instead of doing a generic-dinner-and-movie first date," Ashton explains "we should do something weird and crazy and fun! But what? Rock climbing? Lame. Zip lining? Over done. Skydiving? Intriguing but expensive. So where does a guy with little money and a desperate desire to be different take the greatest girl in the world on a first date? Here!"

I look around. "Why?"

"Because it may not look special, but this place used to be loved by children and couples and students and seniors and everyone! It was beautiful! Then one bad thing left it broken and unloved."

"Valid, but how is this a 'weird and crazy and fun' place?"

"That's where you just have to trust me that this will be awesome."

"Does it involve food, cause I'm hungry."

He laughs, "This is only part one!"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Just come on!"

We're walking toward the edge of the cliff thing that really doesn't drop down that far when he grabs my hand and turns me to face him.

"Do you trust me?"

"We've kinda established that by this point, Ashton!"

His hand releases mine and goes to my waist as does his other hand.

"Well you probably shouldn't," he smirks and suddenly he throws me... over the cliff. Oh my gosh he's trying to kill me! I'm falling. I. Am. Going. To. Die. I- I- I just landed on something soft and squishy.

My heart is beating in my throat, and I lie on the air sack thing trying to figure out what just happened. Up on the cliff, Ashton is laughing. He planned this. I'm not sure if I'm mad, terrified, or thrilled. I don't have enough breath to yell at him so I just bring my knees to my chest and cover my face with my hands. I need to calm down. I'm okay. Ashton is not a psychopath serial killer who throws his date off a cliff. My heart is just starting to return to its normal speed when the air sack jumps and Ashton is next to me still in a cannon ball position, smiling.

"Fun, right?"

I slap him as hard as I can. "What is wrong with you?"

"Well I thought it would be fun-"

"It was!" I cry all of a sudden. I lie on my back again laughing.

"You thought I was crazy at first, didn't you?" he laughs, lying beside me.

"You are!" I try to sound mad between laughs.

"Wanna go again?"

"Yes!"

Ashton's POV- I've never pushed a girl off a cliff for a first date but I think it went pretty well. She seems okay now that she's not slapping me every five minutes then bursting into laughter. We sit in my car after a few more jumps, smiling at each other.

"You're insane!" she grins.

"Yet you went again."

"So?"

"So you're insane too," I smirk.

"How did you manage that?"

"You'd be surprised how easy it is to rent an air sack last minute!"

She just laughs, shaking her head.

"Still hungry?" I ask, starting the car.

She nods vigorously.

I planned for this too, thankfully.

As I drive I glance over at her. She looks even more beautiful with her hair wild and eyes wide.

"Can- uh- can I turn on some music?" she asks.

"Of course!"

She plugs in her phone and nervously selects a Coldplay song. I crank the volume to full blast, roll down the windows and sing. She laughs and finally starts to sing along. From what I can hear, even her voice is perfect. She sets her hand in between the driver's seat and the passenger seat. Classic move. I place my hand next to it, and at some point in the ride they're intertwined. It makes me nervous, being close to her, but it also makes me feel like there's nowhere else I want to be. Right here, right now all I know is car designs suck. The passenger seat is too far away from the driver's seat.

I pull into my driveway and rush to open her door.

"Ready for dinner?" I smile, leading her to up to the front porch.

"After being thrown off a cliff, I think I'm ready for anything!"

We enter, and Claire starts to the kitchen.

"Nope! To the studio!" I say, diverting her down the hall.

I hear her gasp as I throw open the door. "Oh, Ashton. It's... it's... incredible!"

I had covered the room in candles and daisies earlier. A small table and two chairs sit in the center of the room. I pull out a chair for her.

"Where did all the daisies come from?"

"I would've gotten roses, but-"

"No!" she cries. "They're perfect."

Michael enters with two plates. Chinese.

"Michael!" I yell.

"What?"

"I told you nice, homemade food. This is Panda Express!"

"It's better than anything I can cook!" he snaps.

"Yeah, this is perfect!" Claire smiles. "Thanks, Ashton."

"You kids have fun!" Michael calls, shutting the door behind him.

"So," Claire starts "as far as first dates are concerned this is definitely original."

"Really? Cause I thought everyone jumped off cliffs and ate Panda Express in a room covered in daisies."

"I like it," she smiles at her food.

"What do you like?"

"Everything. The spontaneous surprises. The bizarre date ideas. The singing in the car. You." Her face immediately goes red.

"I like you too," I smile, grabbing her hand across the table.

What sucks about dates is that they always have to end at some point. As I walk Claire to her house, we both walk closer than most people do in silence. As we near her door, I stop her. "Can I see you tomorrow?"

"I wanted to ask you the same thing."

I lean in and kiss her softly. When we pull away, she squeezes my hand once then slips inside.